Charles of Valois was a French prince, brother of Philip IV, and father of Philip VI, the first Valois king of France. His ambitions and marriages connected him to several European dynastic struggles in the late thirteenth and early fourteenth centuries.
Charles of Valois also held the offices or ranks of count of Anjou and pretender to the Aragonese throne. Charles of Valois belonged to the Capet family; House of Valois and operated within Kingdom of France. Charles of Valois was born in Vincennes and died in Nogent-le-Roi.
In Maurice Druon’s The Poisoned Crown, Louis X marries Clementia of Hungary in the hope of producing an undisputed heir, but his authority is weakened by famine, noble resistance and an unsuccessful expedition against Flanders. Court decisions remain shaped by Charles of Valois, Philip of Poitiers and the continuing feud between Mahaut and Robert of Artois. Clementia becomes pregnant as the king's health fails. In Maurice Druon’s The Royal Succession, with Louis X dead and Clementia pregnant, Philip of Poitiers becomes regent while Charles of Valois and supporters of Louis's daughter Joan contest the future of the crown. Philip also intervenes in the prolonged papal conclave at Lyon, seeking a pope who will support political stability. In Maurice Druon’s The Strangled Queen, the rival factions around Charles of Valois, Philip of Poitiers, Mahaut of Artois and Robert of Artois compete for influence over the inexperienced king.
